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| Subject: | RE: [gislist] Do GIS Professionals Have A "Professional Association?" |
| Date: |
01/08/2004 01:40:02 PM |
| From: |
Mike |
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My opinion is that after you scrap all the paint down to the bare metal this
certification argument is left with no good reason to do it.
Who wins? Employers will never accept a certification that limits who they
can employ. Employees will buck at having to maintain a certification on
their own time and expense so they can keep their jobs. The youngsters with
a fire in their belly to take on the whole world will use it to beat their
elders over the head with by saying the old fuddy duddies are behind the
times and the oldsters will poo poo the certification saying that there is
more to GIS than answering a few test questions and sitting trough a few
night courses at the local trade school - oh, excuse me - the local
technical university.
The public doesn't win by certification since holding a GIS tech accountable
for damages for some error is pointless since they don't make that much
money to pay off million dollar lawsuits. Besides their deep pockets
employer will still be held accountable for any omissions while in the tech
is in their employ.
About the only people that I can see that really have lots to gain from
certification are HR people and testing companies. For HR, it will make it
easier for them to cull out the job applicants with out GIS certification
from those that have it. That sure is easier than actually having to read a
resume or cover letter. For the certification people, they can charge
hundreds of dollars for testing and even more for training.
(Hey, maybe I am being stupid? I should support certification and get into
the training business. Folks, for a mere $1,500 USD, I will give you a three
day boot camp in GIS certification here at my corporate offices in Maui. In
the morning we will be studying the importance of good shape file
development and the afternoon. surfs up!! )
Dang Bill, I am putting a lot of time in this. Maybe your right, I should
get some work done. lolol
-----Original Message-----
From: gislist-bounces@lists.geocomm.com
[mailto:gislist-bounces@lists.geocomm.com] On Behalf Of Michael Gould
Carlson
Sent: Thursday, January 08, 2004 8:53 AM
To: RICK GRAY
Cc: gislist@lists.thinkburst.com
Subject: RE: [gislist] Do GIS Professionals Have A "Professional
Association?"
One of the probems is that URISA, although made up of nice people (many
friends
of mine), does not represent a majority of GIS specialists. (Another key
problem is that this class--gis specialist-- is too diverse to get a handle
on.)
If they seriously had the GIS community's wider interest at heart, they
would
help form an wider, inclusive certification committee on which they
themselves
represented the minority that they are.
M Gould
Mensaje citado por RICK GRAY <RGRAY@ridgetownc.uoguelph.ca>:
> I'm sorry, but I tend to disagree with most of the GIS certification
> nay-sayers. I think URISA took the appropriate approach to their
> certification process - grandfathering and all.
>
> Certification provides "proof" on paper that you have met certain
> standards. The points system that URISA employs to determine your
> eligibility is a valid tool - similar to marks in school.
> Grandfathering merely expedites the process for those who have been
> doing GIS work for eons with no formal recognition. There really is no
> other way, outside of an unwieldy and potentially unfair examination
> process. Unfair for the reasons many have discussed - GIS is just too
> large and disparate.
>
> The proof of the effectiveness of the certification process will
> likely not be apparent for many years. By that time the qualification
> process will undoubtably have tightened and become more refined. The
> effectiveness will be determined by the number of people who acquire
> the paper, and by the number of employers who determine that certified
> applicants really are better than the rest. If they are not, then the
> piece of paper will be useless and nobody will bother to apply.
>
> In the meantime, it gives those who care to go through the process a
> potential edge in the workforce - just as taking specialized courses,
> getting a degree in GIS, etc. will do. Having the qualifications
> doesn't mean that you are any better at the job than a person without
> them, but it does indicate a measured level of competency.
>
> My two cents worth.
>
> Rick Gray
> GIS Specialist, Ontario Weather Network
> http://www.ownweb.ca
> GIS Instructor
> Ridgetown College, University of Guelph
> http://www.ridgetowncollege.com/
>
> Tel. 519-674-1554
> E-mail: rgray@ridgetownc.uoguelph.ca
>
> Ridgetown: -81.883 W, 42.450 N
>
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>
> _______________________________________________
> gislist mailing
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